Fuss & O’Neill Hires New Chief Traffic Engineer

By Quoron Walker, Contact Reporter
Staff Writer

Fuss & O’Neill has hired Charles “Chuck” Harlow, PE as chief traffic engineer.

Harlow will work at the Manchester location and said he is looking forward to being a part of the Fuss & O’Neill team.

Fuss & O’Neill is an environmental firm that offers consulting engineering services and has been around for almost a century. The firm specializes in engineering, planning, and design disciplines.

“I’m excited. It’s different. I’m more in the trenches than before, and that’s kind of cool,” Harlow said.

“Chuck brings a depth of DOT experience and understanding that will help us improve our community. We are looking to Chuck to bring a fresh perspective and a critical eye to safety, efficiency, and design. Chuck’s decades of experience will ensure that we’re creating a network of practical and aesthetically pleasing transportation in New England,” said Fuss & O’Neill Senior Vice President of Community Development Ted DeSantos, PE, PTOE.

Harlow will offer quality control and quality assurance in his new role. He said he will keep Complete Streets in mind. Complete Streets require that when streets are designed, they keep the safety of drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, and all in mind.

“I think a bigger role for me to play here is to help the towns get pedestrians across the street safely and make their downtowns more livable,” the Vernon resident said.

Much of Harlow’s knowledge comes from his previous position as former manager of traffic engineering at the Connecticut Department of Transportation, where he worked for more than 30 years.

While at the CT DOT, he created the Engineering Safety Section within the Department of Transportation’s Division of Traffic Engineering. This updated the existing federally-mandated Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP). The method was developed to be used by the State of Connecticut to maintain the signing on the state highway system.

Harlow said he enjoyed his time at the CT DOT, but was looking for a change.

“I wanted to get back to more engineering stuff, as opposed to management stuff,” he said. “I think this is a good fit. A good company.”

Harlow said that his passion for his job and for keeping others safe keeps him going.

“I enjoy doing it. You feel like you have an impact, an immediate impact, on people right away,” he said.

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